The World’s Biggest EV Maker Has the Industry’s Worst Human Rights Appraisal

The race to keep pace with EV development could be taking a dark turn. Amnesty International has released a report claiming the world’s leading EV makers are failing to adequately demonstrate how they address human rights risks in their mineral supply chains, which gather vital materials for making electric car batteries.

The report, Recharge for Rights, alleges that BYD, Mitsubishi, and Hyundai had the worst human rights due diligence policies of 13 major EV manufacturers, ranked in a league table (the three companies did not respond to Amnesty on its findings).

Other EV makers—such as Tesla, Mercedes-Benz, and Stellantis—were placed higher in Amnesty’s league table, but the organization alleges those companies could provide only a “moderate” demonstration of their human rights due diligence.

“The human rights abuses tied to the extraction of energy transition minerals are alarming and pervasive,” said Amnesty International’s secretary general, Agnès Callamard, lamenting in the report that the industry’s response was “sorely lacking.” Those auto companies lagging “need to work harder and faster to show that human rights isn’t just a fluff phrase, but an issue they take seriously,” she added.

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